Client Intake Form Template for a One-Person Service Business

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SOLOHATCH FIELD GUIDE · SOLO WORKFLOWS

STEP:
STATUS: Ready / Needs clarification / Blocked
EVIDENCE OR MISSING INPUT:
OWNER:
NEXT ACTION / AGREED DATE:

A useful client intake form collects the information you need to decide whether work can start. It should make the next step clearer for both you and the client.

For a one-person service business, that usually means the requested deliverable, the situation behind it, the materials available, the deadline, and the person who will approve the work. A long questionnaire is not automatically a better one. Use the template below as a starting point and remove questions that do not change what you do next.

Copy this client intake form

Use this form after an initial enquiry has established a plausible fit. If someone is still deciding whether your service is relevant, ask the two or three questions you need for that decision first. Save detailed delivery questions for the next stage.

PROJECT CONTACT
Name:
Business or team:
Email:
Who will provide the final approval?

THE REQUEST
What do you want us to produce?
Where will the finished work be used?
Who will use or read it?
What problem should this piece of work help with?

CURRENT MATERIALS
What already exists?
Link to relevant documents or examples:
Which materials are final, and which may still change?
Who owns the task of supplying missing materials?

BOUNDARIES
What must be included?
What is outside this project?
Are there existing brand, format, or accessibility requirements?
Are any specialist reviews needed before publication or use?

TIMING AND REVIEW
When do you need the finished work, and why?
When can you supply the required inputs?
Who will send consolidated feedback?
Are there dates when the approver is unavailable?

NEXT STEP
What is still uncertain?
What question would you like answered before work begins?

Keep links and instructions together. If an account invitation or a file upload is necessary, give a clear route for that step. Avoid putting passwords or unrelated personal information into a general intake form.

Ask questions that change a decision

Review each question against a specific use. “Where will the finished work be used?” may change the format. “Who approves it?” determines whose feedback you need. “Why this deadline?” helps distinguish a fixed event from a preferred date.

By comparison, a request for a complete company history may add reading without changing the deliverable. You can ask for extra context later when a particular answer creates a real need for it.

Separate essential inputs from helpful context. Label a field as required only when you cannot make the next decision without it. A prospect may not yet know the answer to every question; an honest “not decided” is more useful than a guess.

Filled example: a one-page service guide

Illustrative example: a solo designer is preparing a one-page PDF explaining a coach’s three service options. This is a hypothetical project, not a SoloHatch customer result.

Requested deliverable

One PDF page that can be emailed after an enquiry.

Reader

A prospective client comparing the coach’s introductory, standard, and extended packages.

Existing inputs

A service document, a logo, and an example of the preferred tone.

Unfinished input

The extended package description is not yet approved.

Approver

The coach, who will send one combined feedback message.

Timing

A preferred delivery date next Friday; final descriptions are expected on Tuesday.

Exclusions

No website build, new photography, or changes to the services themselves.

The form has revealed a dependency: the extended package description. Starting the final layout before that description is ready could create avoidable rework. The next action is to agree when that input will arrive and what can be prepared in the meantime.

Review answers with a simple input check

Do not treat a submitted form as automatic approval to start. Read the answers and classify missing information by its effect on the work.

• Ready: the deliverable, essential inputs, approver, and review route are clear.
• Needs clarification: an answer changes the scope or format, but a short conversation could resolve it.
• Blocked: an essential input or decision is unavailable. Identify its owner and the effect on timing.

For the example, the logo and approved descriptions can be marked ready. The incomplete package description remains blocked. A preference about icon style might be useful context rather than a reason to delay all preparation.

If the answers describe several different projects, narrow the current request before estimating the work. A form should reveal uncertainty; it cannot resolve every scope decision on its own.

Send a start-ready summary

Turn the answers into a short confirmation the client can check. This closes the gap between collecting information and using it.

Thanks for the project details. My understanding is:

Deliverable:
Intended reader and use:
Inputs received:
Inputs still needed, with owner and expected date:
Included work:
Excluded work:
Approver and feedback route:
Proposed next step:

Please correct anything above before I plan the next stage.

In the example, the next step might be preparing a rough content structure while waiting for Tuesday’s final description. Do not silently convert a preferred delivery date into a promise that ignores the missing input.

Three intake problems to watch for

The client asks for a result you cannot directly control

“Get more enquiries” is an aim. A service guide is a deliverable. Explain what you can produce and how the client intends to use it, without turning the aim into a guaranteed outcome.

Several people can request changes

Ask who consolidates feedback and who gives the final approval. If those roles are different, record both. This is a workflow decision, not a reason to exclude useful stakeholder input.

The form keeps growing after every project

Keep a short core form and add a small project-specific section only when needed. Review unused questions rather than making every future client answer every past question.

Choose your next action

Try the form on one suitable project. After delivery, note which answer prevented confusion and which question you never used. Revise the form from that evidence instead of expanding it by habit.

For the next stage, use the first-offer framework to clarify what is included, or the workflow map guide to connect enquiry, intake, delivery, and follow-up.

Subject: [Project] — inputs and next step

Hi [Name],

Here is my start-ready summary for the service guide.

Agreed output: one PDF page describing your three service options, using the approved source information.

Ready: the logo, initial service document and tone reference.

Still needed: the approved extended-package description, the person supplying it and the expected date.

Review route: please confirm who will send consolidated feedback and approve the final page.

Next step: I can prepare the content structure while the missing description is confirmed. I will confirm the layout and delivery timing once the required inputs and review route are clear.

Handoff: we will use the file formats, access route and completion checks recorded in the scope.

Please correct any point above before I plan the next stage.

Best,
[Name]

This guide was developed with AI assistance. Examples are illustrative, and templates should be adapted to your situation. SoloHatch is operated by My Target Limited. About SoloHatch · Browse all guides